Das Kapital
by Karl Marx · first published 1867
21% recommend70% neutral9% critical
Why HN recommends it
Framework for analyzing capital, labor, and profit (including the labor theory of value), suggested for anyone wanting to understand economics critically, whatever their politics. Often paired with Adam Smith and Keynes.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Das Kapital, Karl Marx's seminal work, is the book that above all others formed the twentieth century. From Kapital sprung the economic and political systems that at one time dominated half the earth and for nearly a century kept the world on the brink of war.
Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
Related books
Communist Manifesto
Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels
Recommended by 31 · mentioned by 20631 recommend · 206 mention31 recommend · 20631 recommend
Capital
Karl Marx, Paul Reitter, Paul North, Wendy Brown
Recommended by 31 · mentioned by 9631 recommend · 96 mention31 recommend · 9631 recommend
2016–2023Spark Joy
Marie Kondo
Recommended by 3 · mentioned by 43 recommend · 4 mention3 recommend · 43 recommend
2010–2026Anne of Green Gables
Lucy Maud Montgomery
Recommended by 4 · mentioned by 144 recommend · 14 mention4 recommend · 144 recommend
2010–2022Applied Economics
Thomas Sowell
Recommended by 5 · mentioned by 65 recommend · 6 mention5 recommend · 65 recommend
2008–2026Mein Kampf
Adolf Hitler
Recommended by 15 · mentioned by 53515 recommend · 535 mention15 recommend · 53515 recommend
2015–2026A short account of the destruction of the Indies
Bartolomé de las Casas
Recommended by 12 · mentioned by 1312 recommend · 13 mention12 recommend · 1312 recommend
2007–2026The Wealth of Nations
Adam Smith
Recommended by 92 · mentioned by 40592 recommend · 405 mention92 recommend · 40592 recommend
I know why you get downvoted. People tend to forget, so, that Marx actually was a pretty good, and respected, economist. And when he came up with "Das Kapital" it was one way of interpreting the nascent, unlimited capitalism of the industrial revolution. It's a pitty he was co-opted by people like Lenin or Trotzky. Less for what these two were or did, but more…
on “What is money, anyway?” ↗Economics: - The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith - Das Kapital, Karl Marx - That Which Is Seen, and That Which Is Not Seen, Frederic Bastiat Philosophy / Politics: - The Republic, Plato - Second Treatise on Government, John Locke - The Law, Frederic Bastiat…
on “Ask HN: What are your favorite books or essays written at least 100 years ago?” ↗Marx's theory of surplus value, as expounded in Das Kapital, was what really opened my eyes when studying Economics at university. After reading about his labour theory of value I realised all the textbook economics I'd been spoon-fed from Lipsey's "Positive Economics"…
on “What to read to understand how economists think” ↗…maintains as exclusively as civil matters while ensuring theft itself from a merchant in turn is always a criminal matter through the primacy of private property. to learn more i recommend reading Marx's "Das Kapital," albeit its rather academic. Engels "wage labor" is also a good read to understand why housing is so persistently unaffortable but helps to understand why any other good or service slowly becomes so…
on “The labor share of income in the US is at its lowest post-war level” ↗…Anyone can breathe the air or attend public schools, but someone has to keep the air clean and provide public schools. Beyond this, I recommend reading Henry George's Progress and Poverty, as well as Das Kapital by Karl Marx. But what it comes to is that in the great struggle between Capital and Labor, or Property and Energy, capital is by nature very excludable, while Labor (lacking organization into a guild…
on “How the Rich Got Rich” ↗…accurately describes the angst that motivates the "workers" to want to move away from the Capitalist system of production and explore ideas such as libcom.org. For those with an interest, you should read Das Kapital...Marx was a true intellectual powerhouse and his chops were both deep and wide. IMO, It all sounds very good in theory, but always seems to always fail during implementation, like a bad software project,…
on “Libertarian communism” ↗"Profits are unpaid wages" is an argument from Karl Marx, which he explains in detail in his book "Das Kapital". You should read it.
"Das Kapital" by Karl Marx is still the most accurate analysis of the causes of economic crises. His labour theory of value gets to the root of what's going on behind the smokescreen of market forces presented as…
on “Ask HN: What books changed the way you think about almost everything?” ↗…you are into politics and/or economics (if you really try to understand these books, you may come away having no idea what your political leanings are): 1. Karl Marx - Communist Manifesto, and Das Kapital 2. Ludwig von Mises - Socialism, and Human Action 3. Hayek - Road to Serfdom Those are some of my favorites. There is a giant queue I have left to read, and I've also left off some good…
on “Ask HN: What has been your most rewarding job or project and why?” ↗- Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance was a real eye-opener to me. - Last year, I read both Das Kapital by Karl Marx and The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money by John Maynard Keynes. - Walden by Henry David Thoreau Note that these are classic works (Zen is the newest, from 1974), but they…
on “Ask HN: What are your favorite books? I'm bored” ↗…growing class consciousness is the most exciting, as well as scariest. We can build a non-profit driven world (socialism) - or - hate driven world (fascism). Reading various texts starting with Karl Marx's Das Kapital is probably the most important learning a person can have at present.
on “Ask HN: What is the most exciting development in your field right now?” ↗…focus of tax is on labor ... capital gains and profits (what some people 'earn' simply by doing nothing) this is the exact topic on discussion from the earliest days of communism. Have a good read of 'Das Kapital' by Karl Marx, he proposes some answers for why, and what the future brings under this course.
on “Sweden Has a 70 Percent Tax Rate and It Is Fine” ↗…Hobbes: Leviathan John Locke: Two Treatises of Government Rousseau: The Social Contract Montesquieu: The Spirit of the Laws De Toqueville: Democracy in America Karl Marx: The Communist Manifesto; and Das Kapital. JS Mill: On Liberty (the classic Utilitarian Enlightenment work) John Rawls: A Theory of Justice (A hugely important work on rights and principles of political decisionmaking) Robert Nozick: Anarchy,…
on “Show HN: A political news aggregator you can comment on” ↗…money will become superfluous Given your different perspective, what does he mean my this line? This one bit and the surrounding sentences is where I started to dismiss the text as quackery (compared to Das Kapital, which I did enjoy). When hearing Marx say money will become useless, you've got to wonder what it means to have property. How do you become to posses a toothbrush if you didn't exchange money for it?…
on “Amazon devices will soon automatically share your Internet with neighbors” ↗…state, and the materialist conception of history” while he wrote “literally 10,000 pages on economics pure and simple.’” https://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/bios/Marx.html The fact of the matter is that Das Kapital is a foundational text in economics; it provided an analytical framework and an early prototype of rigour (before the introduction of mathematical formalism) that would influence just about every clade…
on “Have we been thinking about inflation all wrong?” ↗